Blaze's memorial is now at home in Washington State at the North Kitsap Fire and Rescue station. You can view photo's and description of the actual bronze and granite installation on the NKFR website by clicking here. It's exciting to see photos of the actual installation process!
It has been a delight to work on this sculpture for North Kitsap Fire and Rescue! Blaze was a beloved member of their team and I'm happy to have been a part of his memorial. Before Blaze's sculpture is placed permanently at the Fire Station it will make a stop at Quiring Monuments where a granite pedestal will be added.
You can learn more about Blaze by reading the following text which is included on the sculpture.
Blaze was born in Kingston, Washington. His parents, Reba and Buttons, were members of the Gary Steele family who, upon first seeing the new puppy, knew that he was destined for life as a fire dog. NKF&R’s members agreed. A contest was held to name the new mascot and, from among many entries, firefighters selected "Blaze" as the moniker for their littlest brother.
Blaze began his fire service career shortly after he was weaned, and was initially assigned to the operations division, riding in his own seat on the fire engine and responding to emergencies. But, after expressing his displeasure with his assignment by chewing through radio equipment and seat upholstery, Blaze was transferred to the community services division where he assisted with fire and injury prevention efforts.
Unusually calm and friendly for his breed, Blaze charmed citizens – young and old – with his exceptional good-looks, his loving disposition, his patience with children and his impressive demonstration of the "Stop, Drop and Roll" technique. He lived in the fire station throughout his career and, between station tours and classroom visits, provided consistent service to firefighters by cleaning their plates and keeping their bunks warm when emergencies called crews away from meals and rest times. He often provided quiet comfort to both firefighters and civilians after difficult calls. Like many public safety professionals, Blaze sacrificed to serve. Most dogs crave the consistency of one master, but Blaze had to adapt to a life that included a large and varied cast of human companions.
His frequent visits to local elementary and preschools earned him a place in the hearts of every child he met. When firefighters sponsored a party celebrating Blaze’s 10th birthday in 2004, more than 100 fans joined in the festivities. Later that year, he was named Grand Marshal of the Kingston Fourth of July Parade.
The Dalmatian breed is thought to have become associated with firefighters when the animals were used as calming companions for the teams of horses that pulled fire pumpers before the advent of internal combustion engines. Some say that these dogs – who love to run -- were also useful at improving response times by keeping other animals away from the horse teams as well as acting as watchdogs to protect horses and equipment from thieves. Although many firefighters own Dalmatians, modern "firehouse dogs" are rare. So, Blaze caught the imagination of local and national media, appearing in a number of newspaper and television stories. He once was the subject of a seven-minute live interview on CNN.
A succession of injuries and illnesses plagued Blaze as he aged but, thanks to the firefighters’ love and the community’s generosity, he recovered from several serious situations. As he approached retirement in his 13th year, he was struck by an illness that couldn’t be overcome.
This gentle and dedicated firedog will forever remain in the hearts of our entire community.
As I have stated before, a bronze sculpture goes through the hands of many artists before it is completed. Here are a few photos of Humberto, an artist with a welder, working on Blaze's sculpture.
This morning I delivered the fire hose fittings from North Kitsap Fire and Rescue, to the foundry.
The fittings are put into the crucible and melted down with the rest of the bronze. This took only a few minutes. The temperature in the room registered 105 degrees and I was told by the foundry workers, who were pouring the metal, that it can get up to 150 degrees in the suits they wear. A very hot place!
The metal is poured into the molds and the fittings are now a permanent part of Blaze's sculpture.
Blaze's sculpture has gone through the mold making process and is now in the wax room. The mold is heated before the hot wax is poured into it.
Approximately three layers of wax will be poured into the mold to achieve the desired thickness.
Here you can see all three pieces of the mold for this sculpture.
When pouring wax into small crevices, such as the words in Blaze's story, there is a bigger chance of troublesome air bubbles. The iron in the photo below will help alleviate that problem.
I always get so attached to the sculptures I work on, it's hard to see them go. That's the way it is with Blaze. Fortunately, I have the foundry progress to look forward to, especially the patina stage, where Blaze will get his dalmation spots. I'll keep you updated with a few photos!
My friend, Susan, who is also a very talented dog groomer, spent a couple of hours in my studio last week. We talked about some of the finer points of dog anatomy and what gives a dog it's expression. Even though she works mainly with hairy dogs that need a trim, she was very helpful in her critic. We had fun and Blaze's sculpture is getting closer to be completed!
After input from North Kitsap Fire and Rescue, the following changes have been made in Blaze's face; shortened the ears, thinned out the ears, and made sure that his nose was not too level across the top. Still working on his mouth and neck wrinkles. The text and logo for the sculpture should be here on Wednesday and I'm looking forward to that!
The paper logo and story currently attached to Blaze's sculpture is soon to be replaced with polymer molds that have been ordered from Metal Arts Foundry in Lehi, Utah. The story will be enlarged to cover the space on the right of Blaze. Tomorrow I'll be working on paws.
